5 burning questions ahead of WNBA's second half: Will the supercharged Liberty go on a run? Can Caitlin Clark get healthy?

Can an already established superteam become even more super?

Apparently, the answer is yes. The New York Liberty landed on top in the sweepstakes for three-time EuroLeague MVP Emma Meesseman, who has reportedly committed to sign with the reigning champions over Minnesota and Phoenix.

It’s a major splash out of the All-Star break that gives the Liberty an upper hand in repeating. While Meesseman, a 6-foot-4 forward, hasn’t played in the WNBA in a few years, she’s dominated opponents in Europe and will provide additional depth in the frontcourt — a major boost in a potential Finals rematch with the Minnesota Lynx and MVP candidate Napheesa Collier. Coupled with the return of Jonquel Jones (ankle) on Tuesday against the Fever, it’s a significant shift in potential for the second-best team in the league.

The return of Meesseman to the WNBA following the EuroBasket tournament last month was long speculated. The Belgian star is the best player in Europe, winning three consecutive EuroLeague MVP honors and back-to-back EuroLeague championships with Turkish team Fenerbahçe. She last played with Chicago in 2022, but is best known in the United States for her seven seasons in Washington. She won the 2019 title with the Mystics and was named Finals MVP, averaging 19.3 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game in the postseason playing alongside Liberty point guard Natasha Cloud.

It now gives the Liberty three WNBA Finals MVPs, including frontcourt brethren Breanna Stewart (two with Seattle) and Jonquel Jones (2024 with New York). She played with both at UMMC Ekaterinburg, providing an easy ramp-up in on-court chemistry for the new addition. Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello and her head assistant, Olaf Lange, coached Meesseman there in the late 2010s. Meessman also played with Stewart at Fenerbahçe in 2022-23, and reserve center Nyara Sabally a year ago.

New York (15-6) already boasts the best offense and second-best defense behind the Lynx. Injuries and absences marked their first half, allowing the Lynx (20-4) a soft 3.5-game cushion in the standings. The Mercury (15-7) are at New York’s heels despite playing without their big three of Alyssa Thomas, Kahleah Copper and Satou Sabally on the court together for much of the season.

The most pressing question of the second half of the season is if Meesseman is the golden ticket for a New York repeat, as general manager Jonathan Kolb aims to create a legacy for the seafoam. He won Executive of the Year for bringing in Jones, Stewart and Courtney Vandersloot in 2023 (Vandersloot signed with Chicago in free agency) and expertly crafted this roster under the hard cap. Stewart, Ionescu, Jones and Cloud are each making around $200K, while everyone else on the roster is on or very near the player minimums, according to the Her Hoop Stats salary database. New York had $154,969 in cap room at the All-Star break.

In a curious oddity, among many, in the WNBA schedule, we’re not seeing a WNBA Finals rematch until next week when New York is in Minnesota on July 30. Meesseman’s arrival is dependent on her visa application being processed, so her status for that game is unclear.

If one had asked on Monday morning, those four Lynx-Liberty matchups within a span of three weeks looked like a potential avenue for the Lynx to put the No. 1 seed and Finals home-court advantage out of reach. Ceilings and floors change quickly in the WNBA.

Here are the other questions the second half of the WNBA season will answer in due time:

Will Caitlin Clark be healthy and available?

Expectations for the Fever came crashing down to Earth in the season’s first half as Clark dealt with various injuries that kept her out of the All-Star Game over the weekend. The health of their superstar in the second half will be what makes or breaks their hopes of a championship run, or at minimum, a charge to the semifinals in setting up a future title run.

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The Fever proved they can win big games without their star, but they’d rather have her on the court than off of it. Her absence is especially felt late in close games as the go-to offensive orchestrator. Indiana is 8-5 with her (a three-game winning streak upon her return boosted that record) and 4-6 without her (including the loss to New York on a back-to-back following her injury).

Though she’s struggled from beyond the arc and had trouble finding her rhythm amid a revolving door of injuries every four or five games, Clark remains the catalyst for the Fever offense in almost every way. Her 8.8 assists per game and 44.2% assist rate rank behind only Mercury point-forward Thomas (9.5 per game, 56.1%). And she’s the best pick-and-roll partner for third-year forward Aliyah Boston, whose game has taken another step this year.

Fever head coach Stephanie White said Clark was meeting with doctors on Monday and Tuesday and “doesn’t presume to give any timetables” on her return. She previously described the injury as “day-to-day” in the first 24 hours after the star sustained it in a win over Connecticut on July 15.

“It’s whatever the medical staff says, that’s what I go by,” White said.

It may be time to consider shutting Clark down for a little longer than the medical staff had previously, given the related injuries. If the defense can keep them floating around a No. 6 seed, is it worth it to shelve Clark until late August and ramp her up for the playoffs?

Who will take the race for No. 8?

It’s always a race for the No. 8 and final playoff seed as the season carries into August. As of All-Star, the Indiana Fever (12-11), Washington Mystics (11-11), Las Vegas Aces (11-11) and Golden State Valkyries (10-12) are bunched together in the 6-9 spots. Los Angeles (8-14) is two games back of the Valkyries.

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Indiana has the most upside since Clark could return to the lineup. The Aces have the experience, but have been inconsistent and defensively challenged this year. For the Mystics and Valkyries, feel-good stories could turn into playoff surprises that far exceed preseason expectations.

How the Mystics fare will rely heavily on their rookie tandem of All-Stars Kiki Iriafen and Sonia Citron. The duo combines for a third of the Mystics’ offense on average (26 points per game) as two of the most efficient players on the floor (45 FG%).

The Valkyries already surpassed the 8.5 expected win total set by Bet MGM and are fourth in defensive rating, allowing 98.8 points per 100 possessions. That's behind only the Lynx, Liberty and Mercury, who are first through third in the standings. Golden State is 4-1 against Indiana (2-0, one to play), Washington (1-0, three to play) and Las Vegas (1-1, two to play). They played the league’s second-toughest schedule in the first half, according to Massey Ratings.

Are playoffs in Ballhalla’s future? If so, that environment will be electric.

Will there be a first-time MVP?

Napheesa Collier’s trophy case must be sturdy. The Minnesota Lynx forward won her first WNBA Defensive Player of the Year award in 2024, added an Unrivaled 1x1 championship and secured the All-Star MVP nod. She’s largely viewed as the top contender to win WNBA MVP, an honor that would be her first.

Collier leads the league in win shares (5.0) and scoring (23.2 points per game), ranks fourth in steals (1.8) and blocks (1.6) and is ninth in rebounding (7.6), a lower mark than a year ago with more size around her in Minnesota. She’s shooting clips of 51.7% overall, 34.2% from 3-point range and 94.6% from the free throw line. Her shooting percentage is a career high by five percentage points, and her free throws by nearly 10% on more attempts. More impressive is her success from range. It’s not a career high, but she’s attempting and hitting more than ever in her career as an additional deep weapon for the Lynx’s offense.

Collier, a seventh-year steal in the 2019 draft, has the advantage of being named a frontrunner early, but her second half can seal the deal. The Lynx play their first games against reigning champs New York next week in matchups that will go a long way toward an MVP-winning candidacy.

The WNBA standard-bearers in A’ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart are deserving of discussion, but as of now, out of the picture. Wilson’s Aces are barely in playoff contention, while Stewart hasn’t had the shooting touch from deep and plays amid a star-studded Liberty group of MVPers. Jonquel Jones might become a talker by season’s end as the core of that group once she returns this week from injury.

Moving up into consideration is Thomas, whose already illustrious career appears revitalized in Phoenix. Despite playing without Copper and Sabally for spurts of the year, Thomas has the Mercury in third place behind the Lynx and Liberty. She leads the league in assists (9.5), ranks 12th on the boards (7.3 rebounds per game), 15th in shooting percentage (51.7) and ninth in win shares (2.8). And Allisha Gray is a player to watch down the stretch for Atlanta.

Will the trade deadline matter?

Historically, the answer has been unequivocally no. It’s one of the many down-ballot issues the players and owners should address in the collective bargaining agreement.

But there may be a case for it this time. All teams have cap room except the Las Vegas Aces — already movers ahead of the deadline by trading for NaLyssa Smith — and five teams are in six digits. Excluding the Liberty, who will use the majority on signing Meesseman, the Mystics ($394,308), Valkyries ($332,285), Sun ($285,998) and Fever ($111,945) all have monetary wiggle room, per the Her Hoop Stats WNBA Salary Cap Database.

And since the majority of players are unrestricted free agents come the end of the season, there is no consideration of whether the player fits into long-term goals. Most of the league can be acquired as a one-time filler in a chase for a championship. Players on rookie deals can be swapped to build around next year as known entities.

This year’s trade deadline is Aug. 7 at 3 p.m. ET.